The Daily Lard 11-3-11

Douglas LeeNov 3, 2011 7:07 AM

Good Morning, Broncos fans! Quinton Carter, Virgil Green and Cassius Vaughn did not practice yesterday, while Willis McGahee and Orlando Franklin were limited. John Fox says McGahee will only play Sunday if he's able to use both of his hands effectively.

Out in Oakland, RB Darren McFadden is still on crutches and in a walking boot, so don't expect him to play Sunday; rather, Denver can figure upon seeing a steady diet of Michael Bush, a RB many Broncos fans had hoped the team would acquire via FA. Also not practicing were LB Rolando McClain, K Sebastian Janikowski, and CBs Chris Johnson and Chimdi Chekwa. Janikowski is expected to play, and his replacement against KC, Dave Rayner, is no longer on the team's roster.

Captain Caveman doesn't appreciate blaming everyone but Tebow for Denver's woes, and Drew Magary says God isn't as big a fan of Tebow as we're told he is. Am I allowed to say this is funny? Well, it is.

Raiders

Oakland waived WR Derek Hagan to make room for T.J. Whosyourmama, whom Hue Jackson essentially said he signed because Al Davis is dead and can't overrule him like he did during the offseason.

Carson Palmer is excited to be joined by Houshmandzadeh, who says his play in the middle of the field is a good complement to the Raiders' young burners.

Trimmings

The NFL has instructed its on-field officials to be on the lookout for concussion symptoms from players.

It appears Minnesota lawmakers will not vote on a stadium plan for the Vikings this year.

Mike Lombardi thinks Phil Rivers is being let down by a lack of talent on defense in San Diego.

Mike Freeman says folks around the league are beginning to questionChuck Norris Peyton Hillis' dedication and toughness.

Clark Judge would like to see defensive pass interference become a 15-yard penalty instead of a spot foul. But, wouldn't that open up the committing of such a penalty as a strategy at times?

Over at PFF, best players for October, the MVP race, reviewing key matchups from last week, a glimpse at their TE stats, and Khaled Elsayed does the 2008 Draft over and has Denver still taking Ryan Clady, whom he says has been a bit overrated and is not quite elite.

Phil Simms claims that Andrew Luck's arm isn't that strong, and Doug Farrar vehemently disagrees with him. Simms also made the statement recently that Matt Barkley should stay in school another year, so apparently the only top NFL prospects are his own sons?

Meanwhile, in Brandt's 2011 Draft do-over he has Denver taking Andy Dalton at #2 and Von Miller slipping all the way to Houston at #11 because he's "a great fit for the 3-4 in Houston as opposed to the 4-3 in Denver." Oh my.

Regardless of if it is McFadden or Bush. Both are capable of breaking a big play.

We have really not shown we can stop the run. Do not see that improving this week. Lets hope that We see improvement by all players in what has been an automatic loss for the past 8-9 years.

Even Mikey lost his MoJo against Davis in his last few years.

And face it OAK has been grabbing talent top stuff for years, all that has stopped that team has been Al&#8217s meddling with the coaching and players.

Al be gone, so look at them being a team to be reckoned with.

Posted by lonestar on 2011-11-04 14:53:24

My &#8220fix&#8221 on the PI is that it should be half the distance from the spot of the penalty and the line of scrimmage as well as an auto 1st down. One exception is in the endzone, then they should spot the ball the closer of: a) 10 yd line b) half the distance to the goal-line (would mean play started inside the 20 yd line).

Posted by Orange and Blue on 2011-11-03 18:07:59

I&#8217d hate to see two different PI&#8217s. That would solidify the field and back judges as the most powerful forces in the NFL (with even more miraculous super powers than the &#8216franchise&#8217QB). Seeing that the prerequisites to become an NFL field or back judge include almost drunkish poor judgement, the tendency to be easily bullied, a genetically predetermined aversion to consistency, and an innate sense of timing (as in the ability to pick the exact junctures in which they would maximize their ability to to determine outcomes), it just seems like subjective PI might prove to be a little frustrating over time.

Posted by Drewthorn on 2011-11-03 17:43:48

As far as Oakland goes, I take nothing for granted, but I will say this: The Oakland offense is that much better when McFadden plays.

The real question to ask is this: Can our offense sustain more drives this week? Because, as we all know, Oakland plays physical up front and that was one of our problems the last time we played them.

Posted by Bob Morris on 2011-11-03 17:09:57

I&#8217ll second the motion regarding how bad the current rules are for PI and face masks. And throw in how inconsistent things are with roughing the passer.

To sum up: PI should just be a 15-yard penalty and not from the spot of the foul, there should be a difference between incidental and intentional face mask, and roughing the passer shouldn&#8217t be the result of the instruction to officials: &#8220When in doubt, always favor the quarterback.&#8221

Posted by Bob Morris on 2011-11-03 17:08:14

I&#8217m surprised about the talk of how we will get pick 6&#8217s from Palmer. He isn&#8217t a rookie. He&#8217s had two weeks with the playbook. Considering our pass defense, I was thinking he&#8217d be a good choice to start on a fantasy team, especially with McFadden out.

Posted by NDbronco on 2011-11-03 16:53:47

Getting rid of incidental facemask was dumb too. There&#8217s a big difference between brushing it with the pinky vs a grab and pull. Since it&#8217s going to be 15 yards anyway, if you feel facemask in your hand, just go ahead and twist.

Posted by Piper A R on 2011-11-03 16:44:44

Offenses try to draw PI so strategy cuts both ways. How about doing it like the previous facemask rule. Have a PI and a flagrant PI.

Posted by ohiobronco on 2011-11-03 16:16:34

Thanks for the Lard Doug&#8230News is getting redundant lately and some of it is not fit to read&#8230

Posted by bfree2bronc on 2011-11-03 16:15:57

Oh yeah, PI. It used to be a 15 yarder, not a spot foul. There was a playoff game where Tony Lily got burned and basically tackled the guy that beat him. It gave up 15 but saved the TD.

I hated the change. That&#8217d be like the NBA giving the shooter 2 points when fouled instead of free throws. I don&#8217t see a problem with fouling the shooter.

If this team is going to do anything this year and if Tebow wants to save his job, this weekend is the time to click it into gear. I might be a masochist, but can&#8217t convince myself to throw in the towel on the season just yet. When things look worst is usually when something amazing happens&#8230hopefully&#8230maybe&#8230

Posted by JoePlummer on 2011-11-03 15:35:29

Piper - wrong thread Dude. Doug, are you suggesting that the current pass interference isn&#8217t used strategically at times?

Posted by SteveS on 2011-11-03 15:17:57

No doubt, chibronx. Especially if you are white.

Posted by Drewthorn on 2011-11-03 15:07:26

French knights from Holy Grail > Raider&#8217s D line

eight score young blondes and brunettes between sixteen and nineteen and a half > Raiders cheerleaders

Posted by Piper A R on 2011-11-03 14:39:49

I dunno, Drew, Hillis just LOOKS like a hard worker. Know what I&#8217m saying? I don&#8217t think he has the same attitude issues you&#8217d find in a guy named Montario.

I&#8217m considering an experiment wherein I start showing up late to work every day, leaving early, and shooting underwear commercials on the job. But I also start &#8220sir"ing and &#8220ma&#8217am"ing everyone in site. I&#8217d need to clean up my haircut a bit and effect a Southern twang, but I&#8217m pretty sure a promotion and fan blog would be mind for the taking.

Posted by Chibronx on 2011-11-03 14:36:41

Back at another place, I got accused of being a kool aid addicted McDophile for suggesting that there was probably a reason that one coaching staff burned through 5 guys before giving Hillis the rock, the next gave up on him about two games into the season, and then a third basically said that they were resigned to and disappointed by the fact that they&#8217d have to enter the season with Hillis being the guy after the legendary Montario Hardesty was lost for the season. I was routinely assured that I was a blind idiot, that McD was an ego motivated megalomaniac punk, that nobody in Cleveland ever said that, and that Peyton Hillis was the real Tim Tebow. I think its safe to say now that while Hillis clearly has it in him to play effectively in the NFL, he is also saddled with some behind closed door issues (maturity, work ethic) that trump all else.

As for Andrew Luck, it might not be a bad thing if the find-chinks-in-his-armour set gains traction and momentum. I get the feeling that Elway intends to have the kid, and I&#8217d rather that he merely set the rest of the roster back a couple years to get him rather than displacing the Hershel Walker raping as the gold standard for bad deals.

Posted by Drewthorn on 2011-11-03 14:27:11

Chewbacca defense > Tebow defense

&#8220This is Tim Tebow. He&#8217s FROM Florida, but he lives in Denver. WHY? That doesn&#8217t make any sense!&#8221

Posted by Piper A R on 2011-11-03 14:20:17

I like the Simms stuff about Luck&#8217s &#8220arm strength&#8221 now. Jeff George had a strong arm. Now it&#8217s about &#8216intangibles.&#8217 No wait, this guys says his a &#8216winner.&#8217

We&#8217ve said this here before, but I think system, consistency, coaching, along with &#8216arm strength&#8217 and &#8216intangibles&#8217 help success in the NFL (or anywhere).

At this level, all these guys have the physical and (most) the mental tools, the under-recogized part, by the MSM, are the aformentioned items.

Posted by RalphW on 2011-11-03 14:14:12

Also, I&#8217d like to see the stat for the number of times the Broncos have faced a new Oakland QB, who was either made starter a week or two before they played us or was an in-game change up. I&#8217ve seen this movie before, and it wasn&#8217t very good the last X times.

Posted by broncosmontana on 2011-11-03 14:10:59

We&#8217ve lost two massive stinkers to two of the league&#8217s elite teams. Not fun, but nothing to be ashamed of for a rebuilding team. I don&#8217t like the matchup of our o-line vs. OAK&#8217s d-line, but hopefully we&#8217ll have a little better chance to see growth from 15, and fix what ailed us in our previous tilt against the Snivler and Crack. We&#8217re not great, but we should be a better team this time around, injured starting RB notwithstanding.

I just don&#8217t want the Raiders to win without their QB having to lift a finger like the first game.

Posted by ohiobronco on 2011-11-03 13:48:27

Raiders are a tough matchup if they found a QB that can pass the ball to its receivers. I hope they haven&#8217t.

The Raiders will likely allow Mays and Miller to be on the field much more. I hope Allen uses Miller all 3 downs and in passing situations leaves him in to blitz every time. No need to take him out, play to his strengths - rush the passer. Mays on the other hand could be the wildcard. He&#8217ll need to step it up and play well. I wouldn&#8217t mind seeing Atwater-Okoye redux.

I can envision a Broncos win. GO BRONCOS!

Posted by Orange and Blue on 2011-11-03 13:38:11

It&#8217s sad that I totally agree about Clady. One of the best players on our team, and the fact that he&#8217s not quite as good as we want to believe he is says a lot. I don&#8217t know if it&#8217s scheme, injury, or playing next to Beadles that is giving him problems, but he definitely isn&#8217t the player we&#8217ve all grown accustomed to thinking he is. This, more than anything else, shows just how poor of a state the Broncos really are in.

And stop pointing out funny stuff about our team, or I&#8217m going to put on my pouty pants.

Posted by Dan in the Can on 2011-11-03 13:36:05

Wait, sorry, it&#8217s too early - misread your comment, Ohio, and missed the idea of using the approach against Palmer. That I like better - didn&#8217t like the idea that it was only ever used against Tebow.

Posted by penguinman831 on 2011-11-03 13:29:22

The &#8220force the quarterback to throw&#8221 is not just the Tebow defense, overgard, ohio - it&#8217s a strategy employed against many teams with young quarterbacks whose teams are expected to run a lot. The first couple games of the season, that defense was payed against Cam Newton and resulted in big yardage from him. His production has lessoned once teams played traditional defenses and stopped letting Steve Smith stand around uncovered all the time. I&#8217m pretty sure teams playing the Jaguars are trying to take MJD out of the game and make Gabbert beat them with his arm. So let&#8217s not misrepresent things here and make it about &#8220only Tebow could ever get this kind of defense&#8221 .

Posted by penguinman831 on 2011-11-03 13:22:15

I am both amused and despondent that the idea of forcing a quarterback to throw is known as the Tebow Defense. (But I can&#8217t really argue with it)

I&#8217m still feeling good about facing off against Carson Palmer though. I think this is going to be like the last time we faced off against him&#8212complete offensive ineptitude on both sides followed by a bizarre miracle at the end. It should pretty much be a hollywood script.

Posted by overgard on 2011-11-03 13:05:51

The good thing about division games is that they have an importance independent of the overall season. Beating the Raiders would feel good even in a lost season. The Broncos should use the Tebow defense against Palmer, stack the box and force him to show he can complete passes. Don&#8217t let him fake knowing the offense by leaning on the running game.

Posted by ohiobronco on 2011-11-03 12:57:58

*rubbing hands in delight at the prospect of facing off against Carson Palmer*

The great thing is that even with god testing our left handed messiah, our defense will outscore their offense on pick-sixes alone.

Posted by overgard on 2011-11-03 12:49:21

Thanks for the Lard, Doug. The KSK stuff is pretty darn funny, almost on par with the humor in Paige writing a column that parodies an actual column&#8230 Wait, that wasn&#8217t satire, we were supposed to take it seriously? Oh.

By the way, for a real dose of funny, read the comments on the Elway Scouting Luck article. Apparently simply watching Luck practice constitutes tampering by Elway for some. Irrationality is running rampant when fans don&#8217t want a team official to legitimately scout any and all potential high round pick, simply because it implies that their chosen one may not be the bestest ever.

Come to think of it, I should go back and read the comments in Paige&#8217s column. Woody had the terminity to suggest every throw wasn&#8217t perfect&#8230

Posted by DCJ on 2011-11-03 12:47:45

Nice to catch McFadden out. That&#8217s good news. Would have liked to miss Janakowski as well.